A statement from National Association of Wheat Growers President Erik Younggren, a wheat, soybean and sugar beet farmer from Hallock, Minn.:

“NAWG is pleased that leaders in Washington came to some agreement on fiscal and tax policy for our nation that includes an extension of farm policy through the 2013 wheat growing season. This will allow our nation’s farmers to know the parameters of tax policy and the farm safety net for spring planting decisions and allow continued operations of critical foreign market development programs.

“However, the extension of the 2008 farm bill is not ideal and we are concerned about unknown implications of automatic spending cuts, known as sequester, which are now postponed.

“We commend our agriculture leaders – Chairwoman Stabenow, Ranking Member Roberts, Chairman Lucas and Ranking Member Peterson – for their leadership in putting forth reforms that would have saved taxpayers tens of billions of dollars and regret that our joint efforts to reauthorize a five-year bill were not successful.

“It is of the utmost urgency to our farmer-members that Members of the 113th Congress reauthorize a new farm bill expeditiously. We call on policymakers to come to the table, compromise and send a five-year farm bill to the President for signature this year.”